First fix until 1999

THE FIX from First Mortgage Securities runs until 31 January 1999 - just short of five years. The rate is for repayment mortgages. There is an extra 0.5 per cent on the rate for interest-only loans. Insurances are compulsory.

Bristol & West has a four- year fix at 7.55 per cent, three years at 6.75 per cent, and two years at 5.99 per cent. First- time buyers get a discount from the society of 0.25 per cent for the first year.